The Springfield Tigers will head out to take on the Boardman Spartans at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. Springfield's pitching crew has only allowed 3.9 runs per game this season, so Boardman's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Springfield will roll into the contest after a wild two-game stretch: they only put up one run on Tuesday, then bounced right back against East Palestine on Thursday. The Tigers blew past the Bulldogs 18-1. The Tigers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won eight matchups by nine runs or more this season.
Ian Anderson was a major factor no matter where he played. He tossed five innings while giving up just one earned run off one hit. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in strikeouts (four). He was also stellar in the batter's box, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with three runs and two RBI.
In other batting news, Bruno LaRocca was a standout: he went 3-for-5 with three runs, four RBI, and one double. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Noah Troggio, who went 3-for-4 with three runs, one stolen base, and one double.
Springfield was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .531. That's the best batting average they've posted all season.
Howland hit Boardman with a four-run seventh inning on Friday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Spartans fell just short of the Tigers by a score of 5-4. The Spartans have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Collin Resetar was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he didn't allow a single earned run while striking out seven over 6.2 innings pitched. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Boardman saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Donovan Whippo, who went 2-for-3 with one RBI.
Boardman's defeat dropped their record down to 8-11. As for Springfield, their record now sits at 12-8.
Springfield couldn't quite finish off Boardman in their previous matchup back in May of 2025 and fell 2-0. Can the Tigers avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
